A young agent with the DGSE (General Directorate for External Security) died during a training exercise in Cercottes, near Orléans (Loiret), on Monday 7 October, franceinfo learnt on Friday from corroborating sources. His death was caused by a shooting accident.
The soldier, whose identity is being withheld, was 27 years old. He was a member of the Army. An investigation is under way to determine the exact circumstances of the accident. According to franceinfo, it took place at the Cercottes training centre.
Live-fire training
Specialist units within the police, the gendarmerie and the armed forces routinely carry out live-fire training under conditions that are as close as possible to those encountered in actual operations.
In a statement seen by franceinfo, the Ministry of the Armed Forces has confirmed the death of the young soldier and offered its deepest condolences to the family, loved ones and comrades-in-arms of the deceased.
This sort of fatal accident is extremely rare. The previous incident involving DGSE agents dates back to 2009, near Perpignan. Two young soldiers were killed during an exercise designed to raise awareness of the effects of explosives.